Relationship between mental health, neurosis and severe illness

The National Health Watch

THIS is about the relationship between mental health and mental ill-health.
Types of mental illnesses
Neurotic
By far the most common group is covered by the word neurosis, which can be broken down into anxiety neurosis, hysteria, obsessive compulsive neurosis and neurotic depression.
All four conditions may take many different forms.
The most common element in anxiety neurosis is fear, sometimes rational, sometimes irrational, it may be due to great emotional strain.
It causes acute tension, unreliable memory, an inability to concentrate and exhaustion.
Hysterical symptoms may sometimes be physical as well as mental, and a patient may show signs of paralysis, vomiting,
blackouts or bodily pain. Obsessive compulsive neurosis is marked by a feeling of compulsion to check things repeatedly, or a fear of going outside, for example, someone who has to wash their hands with extraordinary frequency or returns to the house time and time again to ensure that the door is locked.
It is important to draw the distinction between the relatively common neurotic depression and psychotic depression, which will be described later.
A neurosis signifies mental
conflict. It reflects inner tensions, the character of reality remains the same for the neurotic.
They are close to normality and people are usually tolerant of their symptoms because of the similarity between themselves and us.
Neurosis is a result of conflict between the individual and society and of conflicts within the individual.
Psychotic
A neurosis that is a minor illness compared to the major impact of a psychotic attack.
The very nature of reality changes for the psychotic. A psychotic may live in a world of his own, far from everyday life and experience.
Though a psychotic illness may sometimes be permanently damaging, it is more likely than not that recovery from a psychotic attack may leave the human personality unimpaired.
Delay might be serious and extend the period of the illness or the severity of the episode.

  • Next week’s edition – Types of Mental Illnesses